PITTSBURGH - An accountant has entered a guilty plea in Pittsburgh to charges of conspiracy and violating federal tax laws, United States Attorney David J. Hickton announced today.
Martin R. Bujaky, 63, of Gibsonia, Pa., entered a guilty plea to six counts before United States District Judge Terrence F. McVerry.
According to evidence presented to the Court by Assistant United States Attorney Margaret E. Picking, between approximately 2000 and 2007, Bujaky, an accountant, conspired with others to harbor out-of-status aliens employed in the hotel housekeeping industry in the Pittsburgh area, as well as Cleveland, Columbus, and Cincinnati, Ohio, by knowingly preparing false tax returns on behalf of their employers, which failed to report their wages as income. Bujaky assisted in the preparation and presentation of false quarterly tax returns for portions of 2005 and 2006 for B&M Best Consulting Co. by understating the size of the payroll and the employment taxes due to the Internal Revenue Service. These false returns accounted for approximately $3 million in unreported wages. U.S. Attorney Hickton stated that the entire scheme, over the course of seven years, resulted in a tax loss of approximately $3.7 million.
The law provides for a maximum total sentence of 23 years in prison, a fine of $1.5 million, or both. Under the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, the actual sentence imposed would be based upon the seriousness of the offense and the prior criminal history, if any, of the defendant.
Assistant United States Attorney Margaret E. Picking is prosecuting this case on behalf of the government.
The Internal Revenue Service-Criminal Investigation, Department of Homeland Security- Homeland Security Investigations and U.S. Department of Labor conducted the investigation that led to the prosecution of Bujaky.
Source: U.S. Department of Justice, Office of the United States Attorneys
